Tagged as “America’s Smartest Beer Drinking City,” Raleigh may also be known as one of this country’s best beer drinking destinations after next week.  The annual Raleigh Beer Week, which includes six days of rare beer tastings and industry speakers around the City of Oaks, will start on Sunday, August 28, 2011, with a kick-off beer festival at the Busy Bee Cafe in downtown Raleigh.

In addition to beers from the likes of Dogfish, Founders, and Southern Tier, Busy Bee’s offerings will prominently feature special beers from the Old North State itself, including Big Boss’ Harvest Time on cask, Sack Time, and Monkey Bizz-Ness; Duck-Rabbit’s Elijah Craig Milk Stout and Schwarzbier; Fullsteam’s Pork Barrel and Rocket Science; Natty Greene’s Bourbon Barrel Aged Strong Sour and Swamp Fox; LoneRider’s Sundance Kid Pilsner and Sweet Josie Brown; Foothills’ Maple Knob Creek Porter and Sexual Chocolate; Olde Hickory’s Death By Hops and Hefeweizen; and Boylan Bridge’s “Brew it Forward” ESB.

For the rest of the kick-off festival offerings and Raleigh Beer Week events, see the list and schedule below.

Raleigh Beer Week
http://twitter.com/@raleighbeerweek

Sunday 8/28

12pm-4pm | Raleigh Beer Week Kick-Off Beer Festival
2 types of tickets available for purchase @ etix.com
VIP $55: Gets you and 49 of your friends 1 hour of access to some of the best craft brews around. Rare, Vintage and one-off specialties from some of our favorite breweries and light appetizers provided by our culinary team.
General Admission $40: Gets you access to all of the delicious brews and light appetizers provided by our culinary team.

Terrapin Maple Knob Creek Barrel Aged Monk’s Revenge & 2010 Belgian Scotch Ale
New Belgium La Folie & Clutch
Allagash Mattina Rossa & Blonde
Dogfish Black & Red & Pangaea
Big Boss Harvest Time Cask & Sack Time & Monkey Bizz-Ness
Ommegang Aphrodite
Sierra Nevada Life and Limb 2 & Ovila Saison
Coney Island Jewbelation 15 & 2010 Rejewvenator
2010 Founders Backwoods Bastard
Duck Rabbit Elijah Craig Milk Stout & Schwarzbier
Fullsteam Pork Barrel & Rocket Science
Natty Greene’s Bourbon Barrel Aged Strong Sour & Swamp Fox
LoneRider Sundance Kid Pils & Sweet Josie Brown
Southern Tier Crème Brulee & Oak Aged Unearthly
Foothills Maple Knob Creek Porter & Sexual Chocolate
Brooklyn Backbreaker & Monster Ale
Olde Hickory Death By Hops & Hefeweizen
Heavy Seas Red Sky at Night Cask
Boylan Bridge “Brew it Forward” ESB

6pm -10pm | Flying Saucer Presents: Beer Can Chicken Patio Cook out! $20 gets you samples of 5 delicious chickens each cooked with a different canned beer and their respective beers. Consider this a hybrid event of food & beer!

Monday 8/29
6pm | Rare Duck-Rabbit Prix Fixe Dinner

9pm | Landmark Cask night! Flying Dog Snakedog I.P.A.

Tuesday 8/30/11
6pm | Foundation presents Beer Cocktails! Come and sample some Raleigh’s favorite beers as the base for delicious cocktails! Join us for inventive cocktails and some special beers from their cellar!

9pm | New Holland Dragon’s Milk cask at the Flying Saucer. Come and sample this rare beauty in the most perfect of forms on the bar at the Saucer!

Wednesday 8/31/11
6pm | Busy Bee Cafe presents: The Brewers Forum in the Hive. Join sour guru Eric Salazar for a moderated discussion on sour beers & barrel aging. Beers that will be poured that night include Eric’s Ale & Felix Love.

9pm | Landmark Tavern & Natty Greenes bring you a delicious cask of “Old Towne Brown Ale.”

Thursday 9/01/11
6pm | Join Galen Smith & Aviator Brew Crew for a cask of Hogwild IPA conditioned with grapefruit.

9pm | Tir Na Nog Presents: Beer Prophet App Launch & Lonerider Local Beer Local Band. Come out and enjoy!

Friday 09/02/11
6pm | Rare beer @ Landmark.

9pm | Brewmasters will tap a keg of Sour Abbey Ale from Triangle Brewing Company.

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